Diarmuid Gavin, who appears regularly on gardening programmes on television, is suing Andrew Sturgeon, a garden designer based in Brighton, over his garden made on behalf of Cancer Research UK at this year’s Chelsea show in May.

Featuring a distinctive loop-shaped pavilion called a Torpedo, Mr Sturgeon said that the garden was designed to reduce the risk of sunburn.

But Mr Gavin is seeking a declaration at the High Court in Dublin that Mr Sturgeon infringed his copyright and/or intellectual property rights in the work and concept known as the Torpedo. Mr Gavin is also seeking damages for alleged misrepresentation.

Neither gardener was available for comment yesterday, but in May Mr Gavin complained: “My design has been taken and implemented by Andy Sturgeon in the full knowledge that we created it four years ago and are currently adapting it for a private client.”

A spokesman for Mr Sturgeon rejected the allegations. “If you knew the first thing about landscape or design or Andy or the process we went through, it’s just a random coincidental fluke. It’s not a copying thing,” he said.

In an affidavit to the court, Mr Sturgeon said that he designed the show garden over three days in May at the behest of Cancer Research to reflect the charity’s work.

He added that his solicitor had complained in a letter to Mr Gavin about his remarks, which he described as untrue and defamatory. The case continues.

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